Who are the potential leadership contenders?
Left to right: Michael Marra, who is favourite to win the Labour leadership at Holyrood, Daniel Johnson, Monica Lennon and Paul Sweeney.
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Dumbarton MSP Dame Jackie Baillie, who is acting leader following Anas Sarwar’s resignation, has ruled herself out of the top job – she says she does not want the role permanently.
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Other names linked to the contest include Michael Marra, the MSP for North East Scotland, who is seen by some within the party as a potential successor. Elected in 2021, he played a key role in developing Scottish Labour’s manifesto for this year’s election.
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Edinburgh Southern MSP Daniel Johnson has also been mentioned as a possible contender. He currently serves as the party’s shadow economy secretary and nominated Sarwar when he successfully ran for the leadership in 2021.
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Glasgow regional MSP Paul Sweeney is another figure whose name has been linked to the race. He has represented the Glasgow region since 2021 and previously served as MP for Glasgow North East.
Scottish Labour’s ruling body, the Scottish Executive Committee, agreed the timetable for the forthcoming election for Leader of the Scottish Labour Party, following Anas Sarwar’s resignation as an MSP to take up a role as Minister of State for Trade in the UK Government.
The SEC agreed the following timetable for the election:
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Date |
Event |
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Friday 24 July |
SEC meeting to confirm Procedures Committee and agree procedures. |
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Friday 24 July (members who joined on or before 24 January 2026 eligible to participate) |
Freeze date for elector eligibility (eligibility for members who joined at least 6 months prior to this date) |
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Monday 27 July |
SEC confirm timetable. |
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Tuesday 28 July |
Publication of timetable. |
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Monday 3 August |
Nomination period opens. |
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Monday 17 August (10am) |
Nominations period closes. |
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Monday 17 August (12pm) |
Deadline for validly nominated candidates to consent to nomination. Deadline for 500-word candidate statements to be received by Scottish General Secretary |
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Monday 17 August (5pm) |
Deadline for any candidate to withdraw Deadline to clear arrears to be issued a ballot Deadline to resolve disputes as to voter eligibility |
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Monday 17 August (5pm) |
Supporting nominations open |
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Monday 24 August (10am) |
Supporting nominations close |
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Friday 28 August |
Ballot of members and affiliated supporters opens |
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Monday 7 September (12 pm) |
Last date to reissue postal ballots |
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Thursday 10 September (12 pm) |
Last date to reissue electronic ballots |
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Thursday 17 September (5 pm) |
Ballot closes |
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Saturday 19 September |
Announcement of result – Leadership Special Conference |
Further information:
Nominations
- Scottish Labour MSPs and MPs, affiliates (trade union, socialist society, etc) and CLPs will be entitled to make one nomination.
- Nominees for Leader who achieve support of three Scottish Labour MSPs, support of three Scottish Labour MPs and three affiliates/CLPs (of which two are trade unions) will be declared validly nominated and go through to the One Person One Vote (OPOV) ballot.
- All nominations will remain valid once submitted unless the nominated candidate fails to meet their obligations set out above or has withdrawn in writing to the Scottish General Secretary. MSPs, MPs, affiliates/CLPs who nominated a candidate who withdraws will be entitled to submit a further nomination prior to the deadline.
- Nominations (including the names of individual MSPs and MPs) will be recorded and published on the Scottish Labour Party website periodically throughout the nomination period
Supporting Nominations
- Members of the Scottish Association of Labour Councillors may submit one supporting nomination for their favoured candidate for the position of Leader of the Scottish Labour Party.
- Each CLP may submit one nomination for the position of Leader.
- Supporting nominations will be recorded and published on the Scottish Labour Party website on a periodic basis.
Elector eligibility
- Labour Party members with at least six months continuous membership of the Party prior to the date the timetable for the election is announced shall be eligible to vote. Members in arrears are required to bring their membership into compliance in accordance with the deadline in the timetable.
- Affiliated supporters who are not otherwise members of the Labour Party as defined above shall be eligible to vote provided that they meet the following criteria:
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- They have at least six months continuous membership of the relevant affiliated organisation;
- Where applicable, they have opted into the political levy of an affiliated trade union or are in good standing in any relevant subscription fees for affiliated socialist societies;
- They are on the UK electoral register at the address provided.
- They otherwise meet the conditions for membership of the Labour Party, including that they are not members of any other political party.
Ballot
- The ballot will take place via electronic voting, with postal ballots for electors without email addresses.
- All eligible electors will receive one vote, and the result will be determined by a single round preferential voting system.
- If no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote in the first round, the result will be recalculated, eliminating the candidate with the fewest votes and redistributing those votes according to expressed preferences until one candidate exceeds the 50% threshold.
“He led the Scottish Labour Party with integrity and a vision to build a fairer and more equal Scotland.
“The Scottish Executive Committee has tonight agreed a timetable for the election of the next Leader of the Scottish Labour Party.
“The agreed process guarantees a fair and open contest, while ensuring we can progress at pace and elect a new Leader without delay.”
“This will allow us to continue to build on the hard work of recent years and take Scottish Labour forward, ready to hold the SNP to account and confront the poisonous politics of Reform in Scotland.”
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